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Here we are at our 7th and final post of this blog mini-series. I hope you have enjoyed reading about the basic EQi2.0 model and about the constituent parts of emotional intelligence. Even though this is the final blog in this mini-series, there is much more to discuss with regards to emotional intelligence. I will be back with another mini-series that we can view as ‘putting it altogether.’ For now, have fun with this last post of this series!

There are mountains of articles and books on stress management. Everyone has some information about why it is good for you, why it is bad for you and how to manage it. Here we will specifically be looking at how emotional intelligence can help you manage stress. The ream of Stress Management within the EQi2.0 model is about your ability to be flexible, tolerate stress and be optimistic. Being good in this area means that you are able to remain calm, focused and be flexible in the face of changing circumstances (you might even find yourself enjoying change!). You are able to demonstrate resilience, keep a positive attitude, deal with unfavorable happenings and manage conflicting emotions. Besides the long-term health benefits of managing stress, in the short term these skills are important to manage tight deadlines and unexpected challenges.

Take a minute and think of a stressful situation you recently experienced. What made you feel stressed? Were you expected to be flexible and didn’t want to? Did you develop negative physical or emotional reactions to the situation? Were you able to remain optimistic? These are the three components of the Stress Management realm.

If you feel you could be better in this area, try this exercise: No More Shutdowns. It will take you about 30 min. Take the handout attached here and have all the participants work in pairs. Have one person read the SD (shutdown) statement and the other the P (possibility) statement in each category. After each category, the partners should discuss how they felt and what they were thinking after each statement.
• How did it feel to say no, or to hear no?
• How did it feel when new possibilities were invited using the positive statement?
Finally, lead a team/group discussion on how their insights can be used in the workplace going forward. This exercise is from ‘Emotional Intelligence in Action (2012),’ by Marcia Hughes and James Bradford Terrell.

That brings us to the end of this blog mini-series. Thank you for participating! I would love to hear your thoughts and ideas about emotional intelligence, leadership and cultural intelligence. I will be back soon with another exciting mini-series!

If you are interested in diving in deeper into your own emotional intelligence and taking the EQi 2.0 assessment, please contact Catherine.
Catherine

The title of this post is Decision Making. How is decision making related to emotional intelligence, you might ask. Let’s start by saying that the Decision Making and Stress Management realms are the so-called functional realms of the EQi 2.0 model. They are the applications of emotional intelligence, where you can use EQ to improve performance in any area of your life. The Decision Making realm specifically concerns our ability to use our emotions in the best way that helps us solve problems and make optimal choices.

The three sub-areas of Decision Making are: Reality Testing, Problem Solving and Impulse Control. Reality Testing is essentially the ability to remain objective and not see situations in a way we wish they were or fear them to be. Problem Solving is the ability to find solutions to problems where emotions are involved and to understand how emotions affect decision making. Impulse Control is the ability to resist or delay an impulse or temptation to act; avoiding rash behavior or decision making.

Take a moment to think to your life, either work or private life. Have you ever made a rash decision? Have you ever impulsively lashed out at someone in a meeting? What effect did that behavior have on you or others?

Here we are at the final post of Resilient Minds’ blog mini-series on cultural intelligence. We will take a second dimension and look deeper at it.

The sixth dimension in The Culture Map as presented by Erin Meyer in her book of the same name is: Trusting. In particular, Erin discusses the way trust is developed in business relationships around the world. The continuum goes from task-based to relationship-based. It could also be labeled ‘cognitive trust’ and ‘affective trust’. To the left there are many cultures where trust in business relationships is built through cognitive trust or, in simpler terms, through another person’s accomplishments, skills and reliability. The other end of the continuum is ‘relationship-based’ where business relationships are developed through personal relationships.

Let’s practice: You are the coordinator of a local charity. Most participants are from the US, UK and Germany. This year, a Thai participant and a Chinese participant recently arrived in the area want to join. They have never travelled outside Asia. You are preparing a big fundraiser event and welcome the extra help. There is a lot of work that needs to be done quickly.

How would you help them integrate and feel part of the group? How would you assign them the first tasks?

Do you find the difference in the way trust is developed around the globe interesting? Join us for our Opening Doors Across Cultures workshop in Asok, Bangkok on May 19th.

Welcome back to our blog mini-series on cultural intelligence. This is post 4 of 5. Hope you are enjoying the discussions!
The first dimension in The Culture Map as presented by Erin Meyer in her book of the same name is: Communication. The continuum goes from low-context to high-context. Or in other words from explicit communication to implicit communication. In many western cultures, children are brought up to communicate explicitly and explicit communication is considered good communication. In other cultures, where implicit communication is the norm, implicit communication is considered good communication. Children are brought up to communicate based on unconscious assumptions and shared knowledge.

Let’s practice:
Imagine….

……. you are leading a committee that is organizing a big event. There are many people helping out with the planning and they are from around the world. The event has been organized many times previously and there are many things that will just be repeated again this year, primarily because they are considered best practices. You are preparing for the initial meeting with all of the volunteers. How do you design your first meeting to take into consideration the various communication styles?

Let us know what you think. We are curious as to how you would approach this.
Interested in learning more about various communication styles?
Join us for our Opening Doors Across Cultures workshop in Asok, Bangkok on May 19th.

Welcome to post 3 of 5 in a mini-series on cultural intelligence. So far, we have looked at what culture is and the five stages of developing cultural intelligence. This post is about learning to eat an elephant in small bites. Culture is a very broad concept and can be analyzed by looking at it’s component parts. There are many models out there for analyzing culture and many of them use the idea of dimensions. Our favorite model is presented by Erin Meyer in her book called ‘The Culture Map.’ Erin proposes 8 dimensions along which cultures can be placed and analyzed. Especially relevant is one culture’s placement relative to another.

The eight dimensions are:

• Communicating

• Evaluating

• Persuading

• Leading

• Deciding

• Trusting

• Disagreeing

• Scheduling
Can you define each of these dimensions? Which dimensions are related to each other? Where is your culture or cultures on the different continuums? What kinds of challenges can arise from different placements?

I have to say that personally I feel that there are aspects of life which are not covered in these 8 dimensions. Two examples are: attitude towards money and dealing with problems. There are others as well. I would love to meet Erin Meyer and discuss someday!

Join us for our workshop called ‘Opening Doors Across Cultures’ on May 19th in Asok, Bangkok to learn more!